How Does Zora Neale Hurston Create A Social Norm

Words: 486
Pages: 2
Open Document
Pauline Hopkins, in Contending Forces, writes that “...our surroundings influence our lives and characters as much as fate…” and Janie Mae Crawford is no exception. Zora Neale Hurston, the authoress of Their Eyes Were Watching GOD, unerringly chooses the Deep South in the early 1900s to be the setting of her second book; this area and time period’s attitude toward women is very much like the outdated corset, but Janie challenges the social norm through her actions. Hurston deliberately uses her setting to create a window into the culture of the Deep South at the time through Janie’s refusal to fully surrender. The Deep South of the early 1900s is a land full of superstition and tradition; the people hold onto their ways as if they are shackled to them. They are not wearing physical shackles, but the chains of dependence sow themselves deep into the hearts of the ‘ruling’ class. These invisible chains are the Jim Crow Laws, which are the product of generations of prejudice. One particular part of the Laws that makes an appearance in the latter part of the story is that a colored person cannot serve on a jury, even if a trial involves another colored person. It is this unjust practice that, ironically, saves Janie. The sympathetic white jury rules …show more content…
Society portrays women as weak and delicate at the time, which is also how Joey views Janie. He believes her to be “[a] pretty doll baby..” and as nearly all dolls of quality were made of porcelain in the early 1900s, Joey treats her as a collectible item; he places her up on a social pedestal so that none can ever hope to touch her (29). Janie overcomes his, and society’s, opinion of her when she finally stands up to him. Hurston tries to convey through Janie’s open defiance against her husband’s will and attitude that it is never too late to grow stronger and show that strength comes from within, not from marital
Show More

Related Documents: How Does Zora Neale Hurston Create A Social Norm

Zora Neale Hurtson Research Paper

Zora Neale Hurtson was born in Alabama on or around January 7, 1891. She moved too and grew up in Eatonville, Florida, the first black town in America. Her early life was surrounded by this unique and rich, self-governed African American community. This setting for her early years was vital in producing her identity and sense of pride. It also shaped her perspective of personal agency and individualism, on race and slavery, which was unconventional for the time period. This is all revealed and takes…

Words 931 - Pages 4

Hy Study Guide Essay

or segregation laws? C. The legal framework 1. the 14th and 15th amendments in the way 2. avoiding the 14th: Separate but Equal 3. avoiding the 15th: race-neutral racism D. Response from the African-American community 1. Social and cultural implications 2. Booker Washington and economic uplift 3. W.E.B. Du Bois and political action 641 Henry Grady “New South” “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman Ida B. Wells Plessy v. Ferguson 645, 646 Grandfather clause literacy…

Words 3031 - Pages 13